4 is better than 2

I really did have plans to run today, but it was not to be.  I am a little beat up and I knew I was asking for trouble if I continued to push when I have developed a few little aches.  I have to remember when it is ok to push, and more importantly when it is time to rest.  I am a little antsy not running, but I know it will set me up for a better week training.

Ran on the Jordan river parkway this morning, it was a beautiful morning to run.  As I thought, the day off did me some good.  I started pretty slow, but I felt good and started to move right along as the run continued.  By the end of the run I was feeling good and relaxed.  Will head out again this evening.

5 pm - Just an easy run from the club - nothing special just cruising.

I headed to the park without my training partner today, he is on vacation.  I was a little concerned about doing the set on my own because I was not sure how motivated I would be once I started to hurt a little bit.  I took Michelle to the park with me, she rode the bike while I ran.  It was good she was there, she kept me motivated and into the grove.  The set was 10x2 min with 1 minute recovery.  I scaled the set back this week because of the half this weekend, I did not want to trash myself too bad.  Although I was a little achey on the warm-up I was ready for a hard effort.  I learned 2 minutes is much easier than 3, even if the recovery was a little shorter.  I knew once I started the first rep that today was going to be a good day for me, I felt fluid and strong.  I hit every single hill in the park on the on interval, but I powered up and felt strong.  I struggled a bit on the last hill on the 9th rep, but overall I am pleased with the set and feel I am starting to make some progress.  I will try to get for another few miles this afternoon.

Ran on the Jordan river parkway this morning, man I struggled getting moving.  I was sluggish and tired throughout the run.  Although I felt better by the time I finished, I would not qualify  it as a great run.  I enjoyed the morning, just a enough of a nip in the air to feel invigorated.  Ran a couple miles in the afternoon with a client.

First and foremost I would like to thank Paul for putting BINGO into my head, I don't think I have heard that song since I was bouncing on mama's knee!!  I want to know if I sing BINGO through the half Saturday if I too can run sub 1:10.

Anyway.....  I ran 4 easy this morning in City Creek, and then 4 more in the evening with 6x100 meter strides.  Felt ok for both runs.
 

Ran an easy 4 this morning, my week has been a bit busy, but I feel pretty good.  I was not really planning on bring down my mileage this much this week, but it is what it is.  I am well rested and will hopefully be able to run smooth tomorrow.  I felt a bit sluggish when I started this morning and was just starting to feel the groove when I finished.  I might cruise a few more this evening hmmmmmmmmmmm!!??

I had several key objectives that I wanted to accomplish today: 1. Run sub 6:00, 2. 58 minute 10 miler. 3. Stay positive and focused.

I warmed up for just a little over 2 miles and felt reasonably good. At race start a large pack formed at the front , I knew their pacing would be a bit too aggressive for me, and I did not want to die by mile 3, so we formed a second pack. My garmin beeped at the first mile, but the mile marker was quite aways down the road, about .1 miles. My garmin always beeped at the same place before each mile marker so I figured the first marker was misplaced. I was very comfortable in the first mile and was hoping it would stay that way. We picked up the pace through 2, and Taha threw a good surge and opened a gap going into mile 3. I wanted to stay consistent and hoped I could bring him back at some point. Ted was running along side at this time which helped to keep a steady rhythm. I decided I wanted to force a the pace a little and bring Taha back in and moved to get him, I caught him around mile 5 along with Tracy. Tracy and I ran together through 6 and then I found myself alone. Albert was a little bit in front and I thought if I can just maintain pace I would gradually catch him. I closed the gap for the next several miles, but I started to falter a bit around mile 8. I kept the distance from Albert with hopes of catching him by mile 10, but I was dying. My best hope for the last 5k was damage control. I finally looked back at about mile 11 and could see Nathan closing on me, I just hoped I could hang on. I looked back again at the turn before 13 and Nathan was very close, I through one last hard effort to hold him off, it was successful. Had the race been another 100 meters, he likely would have caught me, I was done.

I did accomplish my objectives today. I was at 58 minutes for 10, sub 6, and I never quit out there. I feel very positive about today, and am pleased with the time. I had hopes of running 1:16 today, but I will take my 1:18 and live to race another day.

I would like to thank Sasha's wife and children for singing BINGO to me on the course, it was fun and believe it or not, I did relax when I heard it. I looked forward to the van passing and another chorus of BINGO, thanks again!!!

Congrats to all the bloggers who competed today, it looks like many had very successful days!!!

I just wanted to get out the door and see how I felt.  Other than a blister on the foot, and some sore hamstrings, I felt pretty good.  I thought I would be a little more trashed, but overall things seem to feel alright.

A very slow easy run this morning, felt like I was running in sludge.  I kind of expected this and I think that by this afternoon I will be feeling a bit better. 

6 pm Well I was wrong about feeling better this afternoon, I was completely cooked.  I will hopefully feel better in a few days.

Ran very easy this morning, I am still feeling some general fatigue.  I felt doing my usual speed set would not be in my best interest, I will hit the set on Thursday.

I actually felt a little bit better today.  I have some funky aches and pains this week, and just have not felt that good.  I am thinking at this point I bail on the speed, but I will have to see how I feel. 

Ran up to Little Bob's place for a run he likes to do.  I have been struggling this week and was not sure if I would get any speed in, but I knew Bob liked to do this downhill mile to help increase his leg turnover.  I figured this was a good way to at least get some speed in and it did not seem too daunting, I figured I could handle one hard mile, and one hard half mile.  We left his house and climbed up to the start, it was pretty steep, I have not done a lot of downhill speed, it beats me up, and I don't like the pounding.  As I was reseting my garmin, Bob took off on the start, I gave chase, but he was moving so fast I thought there was no way I would catch him.  I did finally catch him due to some luck with a stoplight and led us through the mile in 4:54.  I actually felt pretty good on this and heart rate was not as high as I would have guessed, but it was an aggressive dowhill.  We jogged around the block and back up to the half mile mark and started our half.  My goal was to cruise the first quarter and hammer the second half.  I felt good and pushed hard in the second quarter to come through in 2:23.  I felt very good.  Even though the set was very short, I felt good getting some faster turnover, this is just what I needed to keep my head in the game. 

Well, it was a big day of running.  I had grand plans of running another 8-10 this evening, but my body is saying otherwise.  I am trying to get better at listening to what is happening to my body, and today says, bail.  I look forward to a good long run tomorrow morning, and hopefully to feeling a little bit more fresh.

Ran from Bob's place for a little extension of our usual zoo loop.  What an amazing day to run - no wind, and beautiful sunshine.  The first 5 miles were pretty slow, there is a  lot of climbing, but we took it pretty easy.  We picked the pace up during the second half of the run, but nothing uncomfortable and nothing blazing fast.  Overall it was a nice run, and probably the most comfortable long run I have done this year.  I missed my mileage goals for the week, but I am ok with that based on how I have been feeling. I have felt better in the last couple days so I hope I can step up a little this week.

Easy run up at Jeremy ranch, I felt pretty fluid tonight, but I have developed a little pain above my left calf.  I think it is either gastroc or popliteal, I will watch it carefully.  It actually started yesterday after the long run, but it hurts mainly while walking.  Other than that, I feel pretty good and am not beat up at all.  I am looking forward to a solid week of training with some good quality.

8 this morning up city creek, the left calf was not good.  It started ok, but by the top it was not a happy camper.  Running down was not as bad, but was still a little tender.

5 pm  A nice easy cruiser run, wrapped the calf up which seems to help.  I felt ok, with no sharp pains just a little nagging.  I will have to see how things are this week, but I am hoping to get some good quality workouts in. 

Happy tax day everyone!!  To those who are paying uncle sam today, I share your pain.

7 miles in the morning on Jordan river trail, windy on the way out, but very nice on the way back.  Calf is still aching a little bit, but significantly better than yesterday.

4 miles in the evening - had to run a bit harder than this morning due to time constraints, but it was ok.  I had the wind in my face on the way out, but sailed on the way home. 

4am early - felt ok, a little groggy, but nice to get out.

6 am, I took advantage of a gap in my schedule to finish my running before the weather turned south.  It was incredibly windy and I felt completely flat, not what I would call a good day of running.  I am planning on a hard day tomorrow, I feel like the calf is ready, it responded well today with no residual pain.

Today was the day to get back at some speed work again. I have laid off running hard for a couple weeks minus a small set last week with Bob.  The plan was to run 4x1 miles at a moderate pace, not so hard I was hating it.  I must say that I had a terrible time getting motivated to run at all today, let alone run hard.  Master Motivator Michelle convinced me to do the set and see what I could do.  After a brief warm-up and some strides, I took off around the sugar house park for the first rep.  I felt fair, maybe a little out of synch, but moved ok.  5:40.  The recovery time was 2 minutes.  The second mile reverses the first and has the climb going up past Sizzler.  I still felt I was running comfortable and cruised in at 5:40.  I was pleased with the effort, but I also knew I would only do one more, just struggling upstairs.  The last mile was probable the easiest, I cruised easy through the first half and ran a bit more aggressive in the second - 5:33.  Pretty good set, just happy to have done something.  My heart rate did not rise as much as on past sets which was good, first rep heart rate only reached 159, an indication that my effort level was in check with what my heart was doing.  Hopefully I will start hammering some better sets next week.

4 am.  Just slugged, not much of a run, but I just wanted to move some sludge out of the legs.

6 pm  Felt much better, ran very comfortable on the Jordan River trail.  I will give the Salt Lake 5k a whirl in the morning to see what happens.   

I certainly had better expectations for today, but I will take what comes my way.I was a little stiff when I got up this morning but after the warm-up I felt pretty good. I really thought if the race went my way I could maybe break 17 today, and after the first mile I had some confidence. The start was fast, but I remained somewhat under control, I wanted to get out of the park without getting trampled. I felt comfortable through the first mile in 5:16. I certainly did not think I was slowing down too much in the second mile, but obviously I did - 5:43. I regrouped after seeing my time and pushed a little harder - there was no chance of catching anyone in front of me, but I did want a solid effort - 5:38. The last .17 was about the same pace. The garmin called my average at 5:33 per mile, which is better than I have run this year, I think I may be paying a little bit for Thursday's miles, but a race is a race. I will continue to look for steady improvement in my per mile averages and hopefully will get them back down soon. I ran 10 more after the race and cheered on many of the other runners. Great Job to all those bloggers who ran some outstanding times today!!

mile 1	5:16	5:16
mile 2	5:43	10:59
mile 3	5:38	16:39
.17	:57	17:35

Decided today was a good day to rest.  My left glute was giving me some trouble after yesterday's run, but it feels ok now. 

9.25 am

What a beautiful morning for a run.  I was pretty slow starting, but by the end of the run I was feeling good.  My left hip seems to be feeling ok, but still a little tender after the run.  I saw a pelican today on the run, really cool!!!  Running is truly an amazing way to see a lot of amazing things.

5 miles in the afternoon - I felt pretty good on these, a pretty easy run.

I wanted to turn my legs over a bit today so I headed to the track to run some faster paced 400's.  I have not been on the track for a couple years so I thought I would just do a few to see how I felt.  After the set, I still think I prefer a road setting and a time setting to the track.  Anyway, 5x400 (79,78,77,77,78)  They felt ok, but not great, I really need to start working on getting some leg turnover!

Ran an easy 7 this morning - had a problem with my blood sugar about 2 miles into the run.  I have had this before and usually I have to sit for a few minutes and let it stabilize - today was not different.  I was still a little shakey when I finished, but I ran well for the last 3.5 miles.

PM 8.5 miles up city creek canyon for the first 6.5 and then 2 more slow with a client.  I felt very good climbing up the canyon this afternoon and even better coming down.  My legs, although a little tired, felt very fluid.  Came down close to 6:15 pace with heart rate sitting in the low 130's.  Overall a pretty good day of running.

SugarHouse Park

I was a little short of time today, but I still wanted to get a set of miles in.  I knew I would not have time for 4, but 3 was in the cards. After a short warm-up and some strides, I was set.  The first mile started and I felt pretty good, relaxed and comfortable, I hit the hill on the far side of the park and it felt pretty easy.  I wanted to stay relaxed and just run through the mile and let the time take care of itself. (Mile 1: 5:31) The second mile has the net gain of elevation with the big hill near Sizzler.  I was feeling pretty frisky and took off, unfortunately my garmin clicked off the mile way toooooooo early.  I would like to think I covered the mile in 4:00, but even I am not that naive.  I kind of pieced together my time to be about 5:35.  The recovery time was 2.5 minutes.  I was hoping to run under 5:30 for number 3, but I did not want to feel like I was suffering to do it.  I approached the hill on the back side and again just cruised up to the top, I felt very fluid and relaxed and pushed through to a 5:29.  I am a little disappointed that I did not plan my schedule better to allow for another rep or two.  Today was the most relaxed I felt since I started doing this set.   

I ran a very sloooooooooow 6 this morning on the Jordan River parkway.  It was a pretty run and I got to see the pelican again - so cool.

6 more this evening on the Jeremy Ranch road - again another picture perfect run. 

Decided that racing the 30k today would not have been in my best interest. I do not feel I have enough speed to run effectively that far, and my goals this year are to increase my leg speed. I warmed up for about 3 miles and did some strides, and took a look around to see who was there. I had high hopes that everyone was running the 30k and I could finally cruise to a win, but Chad wrecked my plans!!!!!! I thought if I could stay close through the first mile I might have a chance, I was wrong. Although I was close to Chad through the first mile, he punished me in the downhill and opened up a huge gap. Overall I felt pretty good, I maybe could have pushed a little harder in the opening mile, and possible finished a little stronger, but we are talking about making up only a fraction of time. My Garmin called the course at 2.93, and Chad's 2:95, I am wish it would have been a whole 5k, I know I could have been under 17, but that will wait for another day. Average pace was 5:30. I ran an additional 8.5 after the race up city creek.

Mile 1	5:42	5:42
Mile 2	5:35	11:17
Mile 2.93	4:46	16:04

An easy run in Park City.  It was an incredible evening for a run.  I just wanted to get out today and move the legs a little.

I ran 8 this morning on the Jordan river trail, what a beautiful morning.  I was a little sluggish getting started, but felt smooth by the time the run ended.

Ran 5 more this afternoon - HOT!  I know by summer's standards it is not that hot yet, but it sure is warm for this time of year.  I felt ok on this run, picked up the pace a little on the last mile, but nothing worth noting.